PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art — Synthesthesia
For an installation at the PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art in Montreal, Alexandre Quessy of Art Plus Code delivered the software development for Synthesthesia—an experience exploring cross-sensory perception and real-time signal synthesis at the intersection of sound, image, and interaction.
Context
The PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art hosts immersive and digital art projects. Synthesthesia fits that line: the public engages with a work whose behaviour depends on inputs captured and processed by the software.
The Synthesthesia workshop is offered to groups taking part in an interactive visit of the Ryoji Ikeda exhibition led by DHC/ART educators.
DHC/ART-Education is pleased to collaborate with the artist-run centre Perte de signal on designing its interactive workshop related to the Ryoji Ikeda exhibition.
For the occasion, Alexandre Quessy, Darsha Hewitt, Nelly-Ève Rajotte, and Claudette Lemay of Perte de signal developed a unique, playful, innovative activity called SYNTHESTHESIA. During the workshop, participants create an experimental sound composition from black-and-white collages they assemble. These collages act as “visual scores” and are then analysed by the free software SYNTHESTHESIA to generate sounds and explore their properties.
This software was specially designed by Alexandre Quessy for our workshop at DHC/ART. It will premiere throughout the Ryoji Ikeda exhibition—for all participants to use!
Objectives
- Define the concept and UX design for cultural mediation software.
- Deliver reliable software for the exhibition (repeated sessions, varied audiences).
- Enable responsive behaviour suited to an artistic installation.
Workshop flow:
- Participants are first introduced to ways of representing sound with images, such as waveforms and spectral diagrams.
- Educators then present the five “sound toys” and how different image features influence sound. The five toys are: 1. melodic line, 2. waveform, 3. amplitude, 4. frequency, and 5. spectrum. These toys are part of the free Synthesthesia software.
- Participants create collages in small groups by cutting and tearing shapes from white paper and assembling them on black cardboard to build different images. Finished collages become “visual scores” ready to produce sound.
- Each group can try its visual score with the sound toy of its choice. All Synthesthesia toys analyse the visual score in real time with a camera. The Synthesthesia computer software turns the visual score into sound. Participants see image and sound analysis on a computer screen.
- Finally, we review the activity by presenting each group’s visual and sonic compositions and discussing them.
Come try SYNTHESTHESIA to explore properties of sound, reflect on how sound can be represented in images, and demystify live creation and improvisation.
Technical solution
Design and implementation of custom applications and modules for capture, processing, and playback, coordinated with the project’s artistic and technical needs.
Technologies
- Video camera capture.
- Real-time image analysis.
- Musical audio synthesis.
- Easy deployment so the installation runs reliably at all times.
Notes
Perte de signal is a Montreal artist-run centre whose mandate is to promote digital arts and innovation in art linked to new technologies. From audio performance to video projection, mechanical installation, and public intervention, members’ work spans many media and plastic approaches. Perte de signal’s activities mainly support: 1) showcasing members’ work nationally and internationally; 2) research-creation and artistic experimentation; 3) critical reflection on digital arts; and 4) mediation with diverse audiences. Above all, Perte de signal is a meeting place that fosters initiatives, collaboration, exchange, and knowledge sharing across the artistic community.
For PHI’s general programming, see the official site: phi.ca.